OTAY MESA  With the San Ysidro Port of Entry’s northbound lanes closed Wednesday, drivers and pedestrians endured long lines to enter the U.S. through the Otay Mesa crossing. Many said they waited for more than three hours.

“We’re very tired,” said Aurora Espinosa, 57, of Encanto, among the rows of drivers who inched toward the inspection booths about 5 p.m. Espinosa had traveled to Tijuana in the morning to pick up a new pair of glasses.

Accompanied by her sister-in-law, Irasema Escobosa, she had expected to make the return trip in a couple of hours — not five. The two women spent an hour trying to cross at San Ysidro, but by the time they arrived at noon, the northbound lanes had been closed for more than an hour. The drive to Otay Mesa and the subsequent wait took four more hours.

So it went for countless others, each with a story to tell of how they made it across to San Diego on the day the world’s busiest land border crossing shut down. Otay Mesa’s 13 vehicle lanes were open, some for the streamlined SENTRI and Ready Lane users, but the mass of drivers and walkers faced lengthy waits.

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In the pedestrian line, which stretched for more than a mile throughout the afternoon, tempers flared when some people accused others of jumping the line. Tijuana police officers had to intervene.

Among those who waited patiently was Edwin Miranda, a 42-year-old U.S. citizen who lives in Playas de Tijuana and crosses to his job — driving a bus for Barona Casino.

Following his normal routine, Miranda drove to San Ysidro, arriving at 10:30 a.m. — 15 minutes before the shutdown. Unable to cross, he headed to Otay Mesa, but after spending more than two hours stuck in traffic, Miranda decided to walk across. That took another three hours.

By then, it was too late for work: “Things happen, you get stressed, it’s not going to solve anything,” Miranda said, smiling. “I’ve lost my day, but tomorrow’s another day.”

One of the few happy travelers was Linda Duke of Bonita, who owns a maquiladora factory in Tijuana. Duke drove into Mexico on Wednesday morning, but opted to return on foot when she learned that Otay’s vehicle lanes were backed up.

Thanks to her SENTRI card, Duke was able to stroll past hundreds of other pedestrians into the U.S. inspections area. “I thought it was going to be at least 45 minutes,” Duke said. “It was nothing, zero. It was amazing.”